Landslide
by HufflepuffFinder98
Summary: Nearing the second anniversary of the sinking, Jane is moving forward from the loss of her sister and lover. Li has already moved on from the loss of her best friend and has started a new life. But how much more can the two friends take when the unexpected happens once more?
1. The dream

The little girl held her father's hand as the two walked down the main street in their little town. They kept walking down the street and it felt like they had been walking on the winding path forever. This was not unnoticed by the child. She was terribly uncomfortable with her aching feet and her cheeks rosy from the New England chill and wanted nothing more than to go home.

"Daddy, I'm tired." Complained the little girl "Can we go home soon?"

The father smiled at his daughter. "In a while, Jane" he said affectionately "It's a beautiful day for a stroll."

Jane was persistent. "Daddy, please?"

But her pleading had no effect on him. The two kept walking down the stone path, farther and farther away from their house. Eventually, it was almost twilight and Jane's father seemed to have no intention of going home.

Jane looked at her father and pouted. "Daddy, can we please go home? I miss Mommy, Mimi, and the twins." Her soft brown eyes gazed into her father's. The moment she did, she was filled with confusion. Her father's eyes and how they were always identical to her's, had changed. Her father's pupils showed a reflection of the grandfather clock in the Taylor's parlor room, the one that sounded when the new hour started. The hands moved along the face of the clock at their normal pace but backwards. Jane sat there frozen, unable to understand what was happening to her father. The minute hand struck the 12 and there was a loud noise roaring through the village and she covered her ears. Her hands tightly clutching her ears, Jane looked around to find the area deserted and fear began to consume the little girl whole.

And in the blink of an eye, Jane's father collapsed, his body transformed in a tower of ash. Jane's scream was the only human noise, her father said nothing as he fell, not even "I love you" or simply "Jane". He fell to the earth without as much as a word, his flesh turned to ashes and the horrible smell of burning flesh filled the air. The instant he fell, Jane transformed, too. Her soul nor body was young and innocent anymore and just like that, she was all grown up, any trace of youth vanishing with her father. Jane ran as the wind scattered her father's ashes, her heart not even being able to grieve. All she could do was run and never stop.

And she kept running and running, her legs never tiring. The small houses with their wood stoves and chimneys were gone, replaced with open air. Grey became white and Jane stood on a frozen pond in the middle of the wilderness. She couldn't breathe nor cry, she was so tired she could barely stand, much less walk. She fell to her knees on the marble like surface, fighting for air to reach her lungs. She collapsed completely on the ice, pulling her coat over her face. She knew her time was coming and closed her eyes, ready to sleep forever.

"Jane!"

The 19 year old opened her eyes as much as she could, shivering violently. On the ice were two figures that Jane knew well. She couldn't believe the miracle before her eyes. She put all her effort towards moving, stumbling toward the two bodies thirty feet away. She got closer and closer, moving slowly.

_Thirty feet_

_Twenty five_

_Fifteen_

_**CRACK!**_

Jane heard the sickening noise right before landing in the water. The frigid temperature felt like being pricked a thousand times and Jane thrashed violently. Despite her best efforts, she still sank into the water before rising to the surface.

"PLEASE, HELP ME, PLE-" she shrieked before sinking once again. She sank deeper and deeper with the light fading from sight, the pain subsiding. Jane Taylor was gone.


	2. Visiting Li

**April 12, 1914,**

Jane opened her eyes and discovered she was still asleep in her bed. Her dark brown waves clung to her sweaty face and Jane removed a strand from her forehead, inhaling deeply. The eighteen year old sat up in bed and looked towards her bedroom window, seeing the faintest ray of light glowing behind the pale blue curtains. The young woman slowly got out of bed, briefly enjoying the warmth of the plush rug beneath her feet.

_It was merely a dream_ Jane thought, still breathing deeply. Just like the others, it had felt so real, to the point where the clever Jane had been fooled. As the anniversary of the sinking drew closer, Jane's nightmares intensified. She had dreams of witnessing death and chaos and falling prey to evil. It was too much for the young girl to handle. Jane walked towards her bathroom while she undid the bun at the back her hair. As she ran her bath, Jane studied her reflection in the bathroom mirror. Ever since her days on the Titanic, she'd changed. She'd grown more beautiful, she'd grown wiser, and she'd grown a great deal more mature in every way. Her body had finally filled out, although it had taken a great deal of time and her skin cleared up. She looked so different with just two years time, her seventeen year old self would never have dreamed of looking like this. But so much more importantly, her soul had changed. She wasn't as believing and curious as she had been, her work in journalism had taken care of that. She had stopped believing in the perfection of Sherlock Holmes, in the way a child would stop believing their parents were perfect. She saw that he was moody and rude, so isolated he only had a single friend. She saw shades of herself in her hero and for once was both sad and surprisingly happy, the happiest she'd been since losing her future husband and sister.

She tore herself from her thoughts as she realized the water in the bathtub was about to overflow. After her bath, she slipped on her clothing and was surprised to find her dress was loose. Jane scolded herself internally, she had been so focused on her work and personal issues that she had neglected to eat sometimes.

Jane buttoned up her coat and laced up her boots before walking out the front door, the sunshine softly glowing in the early morning. After enjoying the sun for a brief moment, she made her way towards Chinatown.

* * *

"Jane!" Exclaimed Li happily. Jane had gone to visit her good friend in China town as the two met every few weeks. Jane hugged her friend to the best of her abilities, a task made difficult with Li's delicate condition. Li and her husband Déshí were currently expecting a child in a few weeks time.

"Where is everyone?" Asked Jane as she entered Li's apartment. Li's parents, grandmother and brothers weren't home, nor was Déshí.

"They go down to the restaurant. I cannot work."

"Has Déshí finished the crib?" Asked Jane

Li shook her head. "No, we have another one. I show you." The two walked into one of the three bedrooms. Inside was a bed with a small crib at the foot of it and the two women studied it closely. It was a wooden white crib with two small doves painted on the headboards and footboards. Jane ran her hands alongside the railing, amazed at how smooth the wood felt under her hands.

The pair was silent for a while as they kept observing the crib, finding detail after detail. Jane couldn't believe all of this was happening. Here, they were in New York City and had the lives they'd dreamed of for so long. Li was about to become a mother and Jane was slowly working her way towards being a reporter.

"It's like we finally have everything we wanted." Whispered Jane .

Jane felt Li shift beside her and Jane instantly regretted her choice of words.

"Li, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it that way."

Li wiped a tear from her eyes. "It's not the same without him."

Jane didn't even have to hear his name as her heart sank. The mention of Thad put a dent in both of the women's spirits. The anniversary was so close and the fact Thad had meant so much to both of them dampened their normal moods. Li's recovery had started when she had married in the May of 1913 and discovered she was expecting a few months after. Jane's grief was much more prolonged, only having started to move on recently. She couldn't take it at times and spent many days crying. She missed her sister and soul mate but was slowly healing.

Li's single tear escalated to crying. Jane held her as close as Li's stomach would allow, comforting her. And Jane held her for a few moments, consoling her until Déshí walked into the bedroom.

"Li!" He cried out, concerned. "Are you hurt?" He looked at Jane. "Is she alright?" Jane quickly explained the situation and Déshí looked at his wife tenderly before holding her in his arms. Jane quietly left the room, giving her friends privacy.


End file.
